AFL-CIO, Chamber of Commerce agree on principles for visa program

After two months of negotiations, the AFL-CIO and the U.S Chamber of Commerce have come to an agreement on three basic principles for a visa program for low-skilled workers.

The agreement is a significant step forward for immigration reform efforts for the bipartisan Senate working group, who brought the two influential groups to the table and asked them to find common ground on one of the most controversial pieces of immigration reform.

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The three principles: American workers should have a “first crack at available jobs”; there needs to be a way for businesses to hire foreign workers “without having to go through a cumbersome and inefficient process” but also protects American workers; and finally that Congress needs to add “transparency” to the system to know how much labor the market needs.

“Over the last months, representatives of business and labor have been engaged in serious discussions about how to fix the system in a way that benefits both workers and employers, with a focus on lesser-skilled occupations. We have found common ground in several important areas, and have committed to continue to work together and with Members of Congress to enact legislation that will solve our current problems in a lasting manner,” read a release from AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka and Chamber president Tom Donohue.

“We agree that a professional bureau in a federal executive agency, with political independence analogous to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, should be established to inform Congress and the public about these issues,” they added.

The two cautioned in their announcement that they were “now in the middle – not the end – of this process” but pledged “to continue to work together.”

The announcement was applauded by members of the Senate working group, including Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) who called it a “major step forward.”

Though Republicans are typically supportive of the Chamber of Commerce, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) slammed the group and said Americans should be “concerned” about the Chamber’s work on immigration.

“As in the last debate on comprehensive reform, the Chamber’s primary goal has never been to establish a lawful immigration system and secure our borders, but to get as much cheap labor as possible, regardless of how it impacts American workers, legal immigrants, and taxpayers in general,” Sessions said in a press release.

Trumka and Donohue released a follow up statement later on Thursday saying their work together should be “a signal to Congress and the American people that support for immigration reform is widespread and growing, and is important to our economy and our society.”